The cords of the wicked have bound me, But I have not forgotten Your law.
Parallel translations
- WEB The ropes of the wicked bind me, but I won’t forget your law.
- KJV The bands of the wicked have robbed me: but I have not forgotten thy law.
- BSB Though the ropes of the wicked bind me, I do not forget Your law.
- NASB The snares of the wicked have surrounded me, But I have not forgotten Your Law.
- NLT Evil people try to drag me into sin, but I am firmly anchored to your instructions.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Though the cords of the wicked ensnare him, the psalmist does not forget God's law. It matters because faithfulness to Scripture endures even when surrounded by hostile forces.
Overview
The wicked attempt to bind and entangle the psalmist, yet he refuses to forget God's law. Their schemes cannot pull his mind from the word. This steadfastness amid opposition points to Christ, who remained faithful under the assaults of evil and keeps His people from being ensnared.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Rom 12:17–21Repay no one evil for evil. Respect what is honorable in the sight of all men.
- Ps 119:176I have gone astray like a lost sheep. Seek your servant, for I don’t forget your commandments.
- Hos 6:9As gangs of robbers wait to ambush a man, so the company of priests murder on the path toward Shechem, committing shameful crimes.
- Prov 24:29Don’t say, “I will do to him as he has done to me; I will render to the man according to his work.”
- Ps 140:5The proud have hidden a snare for me, they have spread the cords of a net by the path. They have set traps for me. Selah.
- 1 Sam 26:9–11David said to Abishai, “Don’t destroy him; for who can stretch out his hand against Yahweh’s anointed, and be guiltless?”
- Ps 119:95The wicked have waited for me, to destroy me. I will consider your statutes.
- Job 1:17While he was still speaking, there came also another, and said, “The Chaldeans made three bands, and swept down on the camels, and have taken them away, yes, and killed the servants with the edge of the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you.”
- Ps 3:1A Psalm by David, when he fled from Absalom his son. Yahweh, how my adversaries have increased! Many are those who rise up against me.
- 1 Sam 30:3–5When David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters were taken captive.
- 1 Sam 24:9–11David said to Saul, “Why do you listen to men’s words, saying, ‘Behold, David seeks to harm you?’
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 119:61 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.